In a press release on June 5, 2023, Apple announced the release of iOS 17 that brings major upgrades to the communications experience across Phone, FaceTime, and Messages, and introduces new experiences with Journal and StandBy. According to Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, “With iOS 17, we’ve made iPhone more personal and intuitive by deeply considering the features we all rely on every day. Phone, FaceTime, and Messages are central to how we communicate, and this release is packed with updates we think our users are going to love.”
Major Upgrades to the Phone Experience
The Phone app is at the heart of the iPhone experience, and it has received significant upgrades with iOS 17. The new Contact Posters feature enables users to customize their appearance and bring a completely new look to incoming calls. The feature allows users to choose beautiful treatments for photos or Memoji, as well as eye-catching typography and font colors. Live Voicemail is another new feature that allows users to see real-time transcription of voice messages and gives them the opportunity to pick up while the caller is leaving their messages. It also identifies and declines calls from spam numbers.
The FaceTime Experience Gets More Expressive
FaceTime now supports audio and video messages, making it possible to leave a message for someone who is not available. It also introduces Reactions such as hearts, balloons, fireworks, laser beams, rain, and more, giving FaceTime calls more expressive options. Additionally, FaceTime extends to Apple TV, allowing users to initiate a video call directly from their TV or start the call on their iPhone and then hand it off to Apple TV.
Amplifying the Messages Experience
With iOS 17, Messages gets significant updates, including the all-new stickers experience, which enables the creation of Live Stickers using photos. Users can add effects to Live Stickers that bring them to life, and a new drawer in the keyboard puts all of the user’s stickers in one place for easier access across iOS. The search function gets more powerful and precise with search filters, making it possible for users to find what they are seeking easily. The new Check In feature allows users to notify family and friends when they have arrived at their destination safely.
Easier Sharing with AirDrop and NameDrop
iOS 17 makes sharing content easier with AirDrop and NameDrop. The NameDrop feature allows users to share contact information by bringing their iPhones together or by bringing an iPhone and an Apple Watch together. Users can also share content or start SharePlay to listen to music, watch a movie, or play a game while in close proximity.
Better Input and StandBy Displays
iOS 17 delivers more intelligent input through Autocorrect that uses a transformer language model, a state-of-the-art on-device machine learning language model for word prediction, and a refreshed design to better support typing. StandBy allows users to view glanceable information designed to be viewed from a distance when their iPhone is on its side and charging.
The Journal App and Additional Features
Journal is a new app that helps iPhone users reflect, practice gratitude, and improve wellbeing through journaling. The app uses on-device machine learning to provide personalized suggestions to inspire journal entries, making it easy for users to start a journal entry. Other new features in iOS 17 include Safari’s greater protection for
<< photo by Nikolaos Anastasopoulos >>
